IEP Help

Here’s my Beginner’s Guide to the IEP post! It also includes a sample IEP that I made, along with an overview of the critical parts of an Individualized Education Program. Make sure to scroll to the bottom for a very long list of extra resources as well.

TN STEP; this website has a lot of great information on navigating the special education setting. While based in Tennessee, the information is helpful for other states as well.

Meltdowns and Emotional Regulation

I posted much more in-depth regarding meltdowns on my Managing and Preventing Meltdowns post, as I presented on it in a conference last year. It also has some printables and visuals you can use as well!

State-run Medicaid-based program that helps provide home and community-based services

Tennessee is currently working on a Katie Beckett waiver for families who need help but don’t currently meet requirements for CHOICES or TennCare. I will update the list when this gets finalized.

Therapy Places

Note: These are places that I’ve personally been to and had overall positive experiences with. That may not be the case for everyone, so it’s important to pay close attention to the treatment that you (or your child if you’re a caregiver) are getting. Not every therapist is the same, and it’s important to keep an eye out for any red flags.

And again: I highly recommend avoiding Applied Behavior Analysis at all costs. Occupational and speech therapy does a lot of the exact same things – but with much less trauma and compliance-training that often puts our kids at risk of being in danger. I’ll write about my dislike of ABA at some point.

Transportation

If you can’t drive, this is generally an inexpensive way for travel between cities. They require 24 – 72 hours notice and it’s usually only through phone calls.

If you’re on TennCare, your insurance should pay for transportation to doctor appointments – but you have to schedule trips through your insurance. Sometimes information can get messed up, so it can be very hit-or-miss.

This is specifically for people in the Johnson City area, but other cities may have similar.

You have to fill out paperwork proving you’re disabled in order to be eligible for the program (yes, I know), but it’s generally a $2 fee for each trip within Johnson City. Make sure to go through all the requirements on the website.